Despite its terrible financial problems, Iceland was voted home to the world’s happiest people (according to the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Index rankings). Iceland?! Where it’s freezing cold and the sun doesn’t make an appearance for months at a time!? “Wow,” I thought when reading this fact. But I soon discovered there are some valuable secrets to learn from Icelanders. And these secrets have nothing do with how much money they earn or how nice of a car they drive. Icelanders’ secrets to happiness might just be the trick we all need to live large in our ever-shrinking economy.

Here are 3 secrets embraced by the world’s happiest people:

1. Naivete

It’s very common for Icelanders to believe in fairies, elves, dwarfs, energy vortices, and all sorts of crazy stuff. When a very realistic Icelander was asked if he believed in such things, he replied, “I don’t know if I believe in them, but other people do, and my life is richer for it.” Ain’t that the truth?! It’s more fun to believe than it is not to believe. And it’s more fun to hang out with “believers” who love a great story and a rich fantasy…than it is to hang out with doubters, skeptics, and people stuck in the abyss of fear. When we become so rational and practical, we lose touch with the magic. Eric Weiner, author of The Geography of Bliss writes, “A pinch of self-delusion, it turns out, is an important ingredient in the happiness recipe.” * So dare to read a bedtime story, if not for a child, then for yourself.

2. Guiltless Living

Due to Iceland’s extreme geography in the middle of the North Atlantic, it was more or less ignored by Christian missionaries. **And thus, the people are not bound by any kind of religious guilt. When Icelanders are not happy in a marriage, they have little fear of leaving the marriage and starting anew. Iceland is known for many patchwork families where former husbands and wives will come and spend the weekend with their ex’s in order to see the children. What would be awkward if not downright awful in many cases in America….is completely common in Iceland. Imagine…actually following your bliss and not being tied down by guilt. I don’t share this information as encouragement to leave your marriage and fly by the seat of your pants. It just implies that we all might benefit from daring to look within and heed the mantra: “You owe no loyalty to anyone but your own soul and that is the most sacred form of loyalty.”

3. Cold Weather

The studies show that people in colder climates are happier than people in warmer climates. *** Why? Because they have to cooperate in order to function in extreme conditions. That social interdependence breeds happiness. When people spend a life alone, even if alone on a sandy beach, they are not as likely to be happy as when they spend a life in close connection with others.  So think twice before you sell your belongings and fly away to a beach in Costa Rica. You might be better off taking the flight to Reykjavik and avoiding the cold darkness by hunkering down with a few best friends by a fire. Sounds almost as weird as believing in dwarves and fairies. (:

The Long Road Eddie Vedder & Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
Three More Days Ray LaMontagne
She’s Gone Bob Marley & The Wailers
Woman Don’t Wanna Bang Around    007
Jam A Tribe Called Quest
Walking on the Moon The Police
Everything Alanis Morissette
Careless Love Madeleine Peyroux
Streets of Philadelphia Bruce Springsteen
Us And Them Frankie Paul
Holiday In Spain Counting Crows
Heaven (MTV Unplugged Version)    Bryan Adams
When You Say Nothing At All Alison Krauss

*The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner

**http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/18/iceland

***The Geography of Bliss